Guinness Stout Brownies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted room temperature butter, cut into cubes
• 8 ounces dark bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup superfine or granulated sugar
• 1-1/4 cups (10 ounces) Guinness Extra Stout beer (see Note below)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/8 cup (about) confectioners' sugar for dusting

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick foil.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, and salt until evenly combined. Set aside.

Melt butter, bittersweet chocolate, and white chocolate chips in a double-boiler over very low heat, stirring constantly until melted. Remove from heat.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add melted chocolate mixture, beating until combined.

Beat reserved flour mixture into melted chocolate mixture. Whisk in Guinness stout beer. The batter will seem a bit thin. Drop semisweet chocolate chips evenly on top of batter (some will sink in).

Pour into prepared baking pan. Bake 25 to 30 minutes on center rack in the oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean.

Let brownies cool, uncovered, to room temperature. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Note: The Guinness should be at room temperature. This recipe uses a little less than a standard 12-ounce bottle of Guinness stout beer. Do not include foam in the measurement. Either spoon off the foam or let it rest until the foam subsides.

Yield: 36 to 48 brownies, depending on cut size

*from About.com

Champagne Jello with Orange Reduction

Ingredients:

Plain Gelatin (standard box has 4 pckts)

1 Bottle of Champagne (~3cups)

Orange Juice

Orange Wedges

Bitters

Directions:

Heat some water to boiling. Remove from heat and measure out 1 cup. Whisk in the 4 packets of gelatin until fully dissolved. Let cool to just about room temp (must not be hot or all the bubbles will go away - and it's all about the bubbles!). Slowly add the whole bottle of champagne - the more gently the better to keep the fizz in it. Pour into wine glasses or flutes or whatever - as long as they are big enough for spoons to get in!

For the orange reduction, cook down orange juice to a syrup with orange wedges added at the very end, and maybe 5-10 drops of bitters to counter the sourness. You can even skip the reduction and just use fresh whipped cream. Depends how much you like champagne!!

Spicy Shrimp, Celery, and Cashew Stir-fry

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon Shao Hsing rice cooking wine, or pale dry sherry
• 1-inch piece peeled fresh ginger
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 ribs celery, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
• 3/4 cup roasted salted cashews (4 ounces)
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 pound peeled and cleaned medium shrimp
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced white and green, separated

 

Directions

Mix the soy sauce, sesame oil and wine, in a medium bowl, set aside. Mince the ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a mini chopper. 

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat until very hot, about 2 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil, the celery and cashews. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt, and stir-fry until the celery turns jade green, about 3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a plate. 

Return the skillet to high heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, the shrimp and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and stir-fry until shrimp turn pink and curl up, about 2 minutes. Add the ginger-garlic mixture and the scallion whites, and stir-fry until fragrant, about 1 minute. Return the celery and cashews to the pan with most of the scallion greens and the reserved soy sauce mixture and stir over the heat for about 1 minute to mix together evenly and blend flavors. Mound the mixture on a platter and garnish with the remaining scallion greens. 

*from FoodNetwork.com

Zucchini Goat Cheese Pizza

Ingredients: 
1 batch pizza dough or a store-bought pizza dough that will yield one small (approx. 11 to 12 inches across), thin pizza
1 lemon
4 ounces goat cheese, at room temperature
Few leaves of fresh basil, cut into thin slivers
1/2 medium yellow zucchini, sliced as thinly as you can pull off with a knife or your mandolin (I went for 1/8-inch thick with mine)
1/2 medium green zucchini, sliced as the same as above
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Roll your pizza dough into a thin 12-inch circle and lay it on a tray or stone that has been dusted lightly with cornmeal.

In a small bowl, stir together the goat cheese with the juice of half your lemon. Season it with salt and freshly ground pepper, and spread it over your pizza dough. Scatter fresh basil slivers over the cheese.

Arrange your zucchini coins in concentric circles over the goat cheese spread, overlapping them slightly. You can alternate their colors, if you’re feeling fancy. Squeeze the juice of the second half of your lemon on top of you zucchini, then drizzle with olive oil and finish with more salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes (your baking time will vary, so please watch carefully), or until the edges of your pizza are golden brown and the zucchini looks roasted and a little curled up at the edges.

*from SmittenKitchen.com

Beer Bread

Ingredients: 

• 3 cups self rising flour
• 3 tbls spoons sugar
• 1 12oz can of beer (I used Yeungling)

Directions: 

Mix dry ingredients, then add beer. Mix with spoon and then your hands (expect dough to be sticky). Place in greased 5x9 bread pan and bake for 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees, then pour 1 tbsp melted butter over top and bake for another 5 minutes (or 2 tbsp of melted butter before baking). If you don't have self rising flour, add 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/2tsp of salt per cup of flour. ENJOY! 

Brown Beer Onion Soup

Ingredients:

2 bottles (12 oz) of brown ale 3 large onions, thinly sliced into strips 3-4 cloves of mashed roasted garlic 6 cups beef stock 1/4 cup olive oil (I prefer extra-virgin, first cold-pressed for the most flavour) Salt (sea salt for more flavour) and pepper 2 bay leaves 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1 tsp Worchester sauce Crumbled whole milk blue cheese Rustic sour dough bread

Direction & Notes:

Get a large soup pot, stove it at medium-high, then drop in the olive oil. Stir in the onions so they are covered with oil, season with salt and pepper and cover the pot, stirring occasionally until the onions begin to caramelize to a light brown. Add in the remaining ingredients, then bring the mix to a boil, then simmer. Cook for ~30 minutes or so, ensuring that the onions are good and soft. Season with salt and pepper to taste, drop some blue cheese on top (it will melt). Toast the sour dough bread, butter and serve on the side for dipping! *from BeerAdvocate.com

Blue Cheese and Red Potato Tart

Ingredients:
1 Savory Tart Shell, below, or recipe of your choice, in a 9-inch tart pan and ready to fill
1 pound small red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 cup heavy cream
1 large egg yolk
1/4 pound blue cheese, crumbled (about 3/4 cup)
1 tablespoons finely chopped herb or herbs of your choice, such as a mixture of thyme and rosemary
Fine sea salt for sprinkling

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium saucepan, cover potato slices with water by two inches. Simmer, uncovered, until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain. If the potatoes don’t seem very dry, pat them dry with towels.
Arrange potato slices, overlapping slightly, in concentric circles around the tart pan. Sprinkle blue cheese over potatoes. Whisk cream and egg yolk together and pour into tart shell, then sprinkle tart with herbs of your choice and salt.
Bake tart on a baking sheet until bubbling and golden brown, about 45 to 50 minutes. Cool in pan on rack and serve warm or cold. With a big green salad, for balance.

Savory Tart Shell

Ingredients:

1 1/4 (5 1/2 ounces) cups flour
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) butter, diced
1 large egg

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch and salt. Cut the butter in with a pastry blender, fork or two knives until it is in very tiny bits. Add one egg and mix with a fork until a dough forms. If this does not happen easily, toss it out onto a counter and knead it together. This dough is rather tough but with a little elbow grease, it does come together nicely.
This dough can also be made a food processor, or in a stand mixer, though I’ve only tried it in a food processor.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 12-inch circle. Place the dough in a 9-inch pie plate or tart pan and press to remove any air bubbles. Level the edges, and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Proceed with a filling of your choice, no parbaking required.

From: Smitten Kitchen

Toll House Pie (AKA Chocolate chip cookie pie)

Ingredients

• 1 unbaked 9-inch (4-cup volume) deep-dish pie shell *
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped nuts
• Sweetened whipped cream or ice cream (optional)

• Directions

  PREHEAT oven to 325° F.
  
  BEAT eggs in large mixer bowl on high speed until foamy. Beat in flour, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Beat in butter. Stir in morsels and nuts. Spoon into pie shell.
  
  BAKE for 55 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted halfway between edge and center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm with whipped cream, if desired.
  Enjoy :)

Peanut Butter Pie

Ingredients:
1 9-inch frozen unbaked pie shell, baked and cooled
1 1/3 cups creamy peanut butter (do not use chunky)
1/2 cup half-and-half
2/3 cup plus 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup granulated white sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
3 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 cup cold whipping cream
2 Tablespoons chopped peanuts

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, mix peanut butter with half-and-half and 2/3 cup of the powdered sugar until smooth.
2. Spoon into pie crust.
3. Beat 1/3 cup granulated white sugar with butter and vanilla until fluffy. Add the egg and beat until light and fluffy, then beat in the melted chocolate.
4. Spread mixture over peanut butter filling. Refrigerate 1 hour.
5. Beat whipping cream with remaining 2 tablespoons powdered sugar until peaks form. Spread on top of pie, garnish with chopped peanuts.

Baked Brie Bites

Rose and Eric made up this recipe based on our favorite baked brie!

Ingredients

- brie

- Pillsbury pastry sheet

- jam or topping of your choice (we used a fig-walnut jam and cranberries sprinkled with brown sugar)

Directions

- Cut brie into bite sized pieces

- Place brie on a laid out pastry sheet and cut squares of dough around each piece

- Top brie with a 1/4 tsp or less of jam

- fold up and press corners of the pastry sheet squares together to form a little closed pocket

- Place on a sprayed cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 375 F.

- Let cool for 10 minutes and enjoy!

Moussaka

 Directions:

• Fry 2-3 large eggplant in 1/4 inch slices 
• Saute 1 chopped onion and lots of garlic
• Add 1 lb lean ground beef and cook 
• Add 3 tbsp tomato paste (one tin)
• Add 1 can broth  (15 oz)
• Add dried oregano 
• Add salt
• Add pepper
• Add 1/8 tsp cinnamon(opt)
• Bring above to boil, cook 5 min until thick and set aside
• At the same time:Combine 1 1/4 milk, 2 tbsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp nutmeg with wisk
• Boil, reduce heat and add 1 egg - stir in with wisk
• Arrange 1/3 eggplant on pan, sprinkle with 1 1/2 tsp parmesan cheese, top with 1/3 meat... Repeat twice.
• Pour milk mix over layers
• Sprinkle with cheese
• Bake @ 350* for 25 min  until sauce is set 
• Broil 5 min if you like or not.

 Serves 4-6 

Mediterranean Penne with Sausage

Ingredients

·         2 red bell peppers, chopped

·         1 small bulb fennel, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced

·         1 large onion, chopped

·         1 small eggplant, peeled and cut into small chunks

·         1 clove garlic, minced

·         3/4lb Italian-style turkey sausage, casings removed

·         1 jar (25.5 oz)pasta sauce (any flavor)

·         2 cups water

·         2 teaspoons fennel seeds, crushed

·         ½ teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes 

      8oz penne pasta

 Directions

1. Coat large skillet with cooking spray. Add bell peppers, fennel bulb (made without bulb and added more seeds which worked fine), onion, eggplant, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, over medium heat 5 minutes, or until fennel starts to soften. Add sausage. Cook, breaking up sausage with back of spoon, 3 minutes, or until no longer pink.

2. Add pasta sauce, water, fennel seeds, and red-pepper flakes. Stir to mix. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook 20 to 25 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Place pasta in serving bowl. Top with sauce. Add up to 1/2 cup of reserved cooking water, if needed, for sauce to coat pasta.

Serves approx 6

Apple Pie with Oatmeal Streusel

Ingredients

• 1 (9 inch) pie shell
• 5 cups apples - peeled, cored and sliced
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/2 cup butter

 Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Fit pastry shell into pie pan and place in freezer.
2. To Make Apple Filling: Place apples in a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine 2 tablespoons flour, white sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Mix well, then add to apples. Toss until apples are evenly coated.
3. Remove pie shell from freezer. Place apple mixture in pie shell and dot with 2 tablespoons butter or margarine. Lay a sheet of aluminum foil lightly on top of filling, but do not seal.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.
5. While filling is baking, make Streusel Topping: In a medium bowl combine 3/4 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, brown sugar, oats, and lemon peel. Mix thoroughly, then cut in 1/2 cup butter or margarine until mixture is crumbly. Remove filling from oven and sprinkle streusel on top.
6. Reduce heat to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bake an additional 30 to 35 minutes, until streusel is browned and apples are tender. Cover loosely with aluminum foil to prevent excess browning. 

If you’d rather make your own pie crust:

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2/3 cups butter
• 1 tsp salt
•  4 Tbsp ice water (1 at a time, up to 8 depending on weather, temp, etc)

 Directions

Add first 4 ingredients in food processor, or cut with pastry knife. Add water until dough is mendable. Put in fridge for at least 20 minutes before adding filling.
For top and bottom crust, cut in half if just making bottom

(We cut the recipe in half because we only made the bottom crust - the top is the oatmeal streusel!)

Lamb Kabobs with Yogurt Marinade

Lamb
1. Trim the white membrane off of a large piece of lamb (this is not totally necessary but apparently reduces the toughness and gamey flavor), and cut the trimmed meat into approx. 1.5 in cubes.
2. Set meat aside.

Yogurt marinade
There are lots of different options here.  This is the general recipe, but you can use almost any herb, spice, or flavoring that you want.  The yogurt penetrates the meat to tenderize it and leaves a tart and slightly creamy flavor when cooked.  Additional spices add interest.  Measurements are very rough.

Combine:
1 c. plain yogurt
2 tbs fresh rosemary, minced
2-3 tbs fresh mint, minced
2 tbs pomegranate syrup (the potluck kabobs were actually made with cherry syrup--the kind made from real fruit, not grenadine, but pomegranate syrup is significantly easier to find.)
juice of one lemon
1 tbs cinnamon
1.5 tsp coriander
1.5 tsp black pepper

Cut one red onion into 1/8 wedges, then half each of these.  Briefly microwave or steam the onions in order to partially cook them. 

Put lamb, onions and marinade in ziplock bag.  Mix to make sure that all meat is well-coated. Refrigerate for several hours.

Soak bamboo kabob sticks in water for 5-10 minutes.  Dry skewers with paper towels, then fill each with alternating pieces of lamb and onion.  I usually put about four pieces of meat on each skewer. 

Cook on a grill, or broil in an oven.  Flip kabobs after 6-8 minutes.  Continue to cook until desired doneness is reached.

Pistachio Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups shelled pistachio nuts
¾ cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cup whole milk
Pinch of salt
3 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract
¾ cup pistachios, coarsely chopped

Directions:

1. Grind the 1 cups of pistachios in a food processor until finely ground, but not to a paste. Set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan, warm the milk, sugar, and salt, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the ground nuts. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep for at least 30 minutes.

3. Strain the warm nut mixture, pressing on the nuts to extract as much liquid as possible, and discard the solids. Return the milk and cream mixture to the saucepan. Pour the remaining 1 cup cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

4. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and add the cream once cooled. Add the vanilla extract and almond extract and stir until combined.

5. Refrigerate until cold. Pour into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s directions. Once finished churning, fold in the ¾ cup pistachios with a rubber spatula.

Banana Crepes & Cinnamon Coconut Sauce

Crepe Ingredients:

• ½ c milk, 3 eggs, ½ c flour, 2 T oil

Note: I always triple this recipe, because you can never have too many crepes.

Crepe Directions:

Beat eggs, add flour - beat. Add milk & oil last. Beat batter until smooth. Pour 3 tablespoons into a non greased pan, swirl pan until batter is thinly distributed, cook until golden brown.

Cinnamon Coconut Sauce Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1 1/2 cups coconut milk

• 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon, or to taste (I used a lot more)

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed in 3 tablespoons coconut milk

Cinnamon Coconut Sauce Directions:

Bring the coconut cream and coconut milk to a boil. Stir in the cinnamon and sugar. Give the cornstarch and coconut milk mixture a quick re-stir. Add to the saucepan, stirring quickly to thicken.

Roll sliced bananas inside crepes. Warm in the oven for 10 minutes before serving. Pour sauce over and serve.

Chocolate Creme Pie

Ingredients (for two pies):

- 3 small packages of chocolate pudding (non-instant)

- 6 cups of whole milk

- 1 pt of heavy whipping cream

- 2 pie shells (shortbread or graham cracker)

- 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Total cook time - 30 minutes. Cooling time - 3-4 hrs

Directions-
First prepare the chocolate pudding. Follow the recipe on the box for pie filling (~25 minutes) - use the 6 cups of milk. After 5 minutes of cooling, pour into the pie shells. Fill until about 1/4 inch of shell remains. Let stand until cool to the touch (about 45 minutes). Cover with saran wrap by placing it right on top of the pudding to avoid condensation and an unappetizing skin forming on the pie. Replace plastic pie shell top and put in fridge for 3 hours. About 20 minutes before serving, pour the pint of heavy whipping cream into a large mixing bowl. Add 2-3 teaspoons of sugar (if unsure, start with 2 and taste when almost done). Add the vanilla extract and mix on high with a hand mixer until the cream is almost whipped completely. Taste and add more sugar if necessary. If not, whip until the correct consistency. Divide the cream over the two pies, serve, and enjoy!

Tomato-Basil Bruschetta

Ingredients:

• 2 very ripe tomatoes, seeded & finely diced
• 1 tablespoon slivered basil
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• Pinch kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• One 8oz loaf French or Italian bread, cut into 8 slices
• 1 garlic clove, halved

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes, basil, vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper. Set aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Place the bread on a baking sheet in a single layer; toast until lightly browned, 2-3 minutes on each side.

3. Rub the toast slices on one side with the garlic clove and top with a generous tablespoon of the tomato mixture. Arrange on a serving tray and garnish with the basil leaves (if using). Let stand, covered, at room temperature until the mixture's juices have soaked into the bread, at least 30 minutes (but no longer than 6 hours before serving).

Split Pea Soup

Ingredients:

• 4 cups Vegetable Broth
• 3 carrots diced
• 1 cup green split peas
• 2 onions diced
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1 teaspoon minced rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

In a large saucepan, combine the broth, carrots, peas, onions, minced garlic, rosemary and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, stirring as needed, until the peas have disintegrated, around 1 hour.

Serve with garlic croutons (home made or store bought) and freshly chopped flat leaf parsley.

Orzo Salad with Sun-dried Tomatoes and Feta

I've made this salad frequently because, strangely enough, I have boxes and boxes of orzo in my pantry. One time, I made the mistake of complaining to my mother that I couldn't find orzo at my local grocery store. Ever since then, every care package from home contains at least one box of orzo, even though I told my mom that my grocery store actually carries orzo now. No matter- it is her mission to make sure her daughter is well-prepared in case of an emergency orzo shortage.

I didn't really use a recipe for this Fourth of July salad- every time I make it I add a little more of something I like and a little less of something else. The below is just some rough estimates, so adjust however you'd like!

Ingredients:

1 Box of orzo
1/3 Jar of Sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
Half of a large red onion
1 Clove of garlic
Juice from 1 lemon
Handful of shredded carrots or handful of frozen peas and carrots
At least 1 cup of crumbled feta cheese
Half a bunch of green onions
Salt and pepper


I started out by caramelizing the red onion with chopped garlic, using some of the olive oil from the packed tomatoes. Cook over very low heat, stirring constantly, for about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the orzo according to the directions on the box. Chop the tomatoes into bite sized pieces, and add them, and the onions with garlic to the orzo. Dress with a few more tablespoons of olive oil from the packed tomatoes. Add the peas and carrots and lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Once the salad is cool, add the cheese and snip the green onions on top to garnish.

And that's it! I've also made it with roasted vegetables- chopped, roasted asparagus is a great addition, and so are oven-roasted bell peppers. It serves about 6-8 people as a side.